D-PST-MN-A-24 - Dell PowerStore Maintenance Achievement

In Dell PowerStore systems, IPsec is used to encrypt traffic for the management network. IPsec (Internet Protocol Security) is a suite of protocols designed to ensure the integrity, confidentiality, and authentication of data communications over an IP network.Encrypting the management network traffic with IPsec is a best practice to secure communication between the management console and the storage system, protecting against potential eavesdropping and unauthorized access1.

The management network is responsible for the overall administration and operation of the storage system, including configuration management, performance monitoring, and system updates. By encrypting this traffic, Dell PowerStore ensures that sensitive management operations are secured.

For detailed information on configuring IPsec for the management network and other best practices for network security within Dell PowerStore environments, users should refer to the official Dell PowerStore documentation, such as the Deployment KB: PowerStore: User Network Firewall Rules Tool and the Dell PowerStore Best Practices Guide12. These documents provide comprehensive guidelines on network configurations, including firewall rules and encryption settings, to maintain the highest levels of security and system integrity.

When the error “-bash: pstcli: command not found” appears after running a PSTCLI command on a Linux host, it typically means that the shell cannot locate the pstcli executable in the directories listed in the PATH environment variable. To resolve this issue, the installation directory of pstcli needs to be added to the PATH variable. This can be done by editing the shell initialization file (such as .bashrc or .bash_profile for Bash shell) and appending the installation directory to the PATH variable.

Here are the steps to resolve the problem:

Locate the installation directory of PSTCLI. If you followed the default installation, it should be in /opt/dellemc/pstcli-version/bin/.

Open the shell initialization file in a text editor. For example, if using Bash, you might edit ~/.bashrc or ~/.bash_profile.

Add the following line to the file: export PATH=$PATH:/opt/dellemc/pstcli-version/bin/. Replace /opt/dellemc/pstcli-version/bin/ with the actual installation directory if it is different.

Save the file and reload the shell configuration by running source ~/.bashrc or source ~/.bash_profile, or simply close and reopen the terminal.

Verify that pstcli can be found by running echo $PATH and ensuring the directory is listed.

Try running the pstcli command again to confirm that the issue is resolved.

By adding the PSTCLI installation directory to the PATH variable, the shell will be able to locate the pstcli executable when the command is run1. It is important to ensure that the PATH variable is correctly set to include all necessary directories for command-line tools to function properly.If the issue persists, it may be necessary to check the installation of PSTCLI or consult the Dell EMC PowerStore documentation for further troubleshooting steps1.

In a Dell EMC PowerStore T environment, the recommended number of network switches is two1. This recommendation is based on best practices for general network performance andhigh availability. Using two switches allows for redundancy and ensures that if one switch fails, the other can continue to handle the network traffic without interruption1.

The use of multiple switches connected with technologies like Virtual Link Trunking (VLT) and Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) or their equivalents is advised. Each PowerStore node should have connectivity to all linked switches to maintain high availability and optimal network performance1.

For detailed network design and switch configuration recommendations, administrators should refer to the Dell PowerStore Networking Guide for PowerStore T Models and other official Dell documentation2. These resources provide comprehensive guidelines on setting up the network infrastructure to support PowerStore T systems effectively.